


she said, they said

by octopodian



Category: Stellar Firma (Podcast)
Genre: Gen, Nonbinary David 7, They/Them David, just some lighthearted self discovery and trans content in this trying time., specifically david realizing they prefer they/them, takes place non-canonically during the expediting arc
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-17
Updated: 2020-04-17
Packaged: 2021-03-02 01:28:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 698
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23706889
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/octopodian/pseuds/octopodian
Summary: Imogen helpfully beeps up. "That is quite clearly not what they said!"Trexel continues on his rant, standing up out of the puddle and dripping righteously on the floor, but David isn't really listening. It feels like something's just clicked into place, but he doesn't know what yet.Huh. They (they!) don't know quite how to feel.
Relationships: David 7 & I.M.O.G.E.N. (Stellar Firma)
Comments: 34
Kudos: 241





	she said, they said

David sighs heavily, rubbing his forehead. "Trexel, for the thousandth time: Imogen is not going to give us access to dark matter. Even if, admittedly, it would be a _very_ efficient way to get Mr. Spitwhistle's coworkers to stop eating his lunch."

"Well, she won't give you any, sure." Trexel runs his hands over his mustache, leaning back against the wall. He's sitting directly in a puddle, but seems to be trying to ignore that.

David groans. "Or you, Trexel. We're the same rank now!"

"Oh, so I'm not important now, David? Is that it? You think I'm suddenly not worthy of receiving a little bit of dark matter?"

Imogen helpfully beeps up. "That is quite clearly _not_ what they said!"

Trexel continues on his rant, standing up out of the puddle and dripping righteously on the floor, but David isn't really listening. It feels like something's just clicked into place, but he doesn't know what yet. 

Huh. They (they!) don't know quite how to feel.

"-and really, my nipples are just as impressive. David, are you even listening to me?"

"Yes, of course, Trex- oh, Board, put your shirt back on!"

-

Trexel is wandering the halls again, or whatever he does now that he doesn't have an office, leaving David alone to his thoughts.

He can't stop thinking about the burst of rightness, that pop of warmth in his chest, when Imogen had spoken earlier.

I mean, they didn't hate it when Trexel called them "he", or when Imogen cheerfully called him a clone boy. It had never really bothered him, hadn't made him uncomfortable at any point. It wasn't that it felt bad, it just didn't feel as good as when they didn't.

Speaking of Imogen...

"Imogen?"

A questioning beep in response.

"How'd you- I mean, I guess, why did you... you said 'they' earlier? About me? Was that just a mistake? I mean, you usually... you know."

"I had been operating under a set of assumptions based on the previous David clones. It occurred to me that those assumptions may not have been correct, and thus, I changed my behavior accordingly."

"But... how’d you know?"

Almost fondly (if Imogen was even capable of sounding fond?), she hums. "A mother always knows."

David, despite themself, smiles.

-

"That's David-7! She likes to- oh Board, no, that feels weird. Xe? No, no quite..." David paces around the room, muttering to themself. "That is David. David owns a... cat? Yes, that's David's cat! ...Well, I like that, but I don't have a cat."

They'd been doing body bench upsy downsies for a few hours, and then some lie down then sit on the floorsies, but it got tedious after the first five hundred and fifty seven and they'd had to try to find something else. They’d settled on trying as many different pronouns for themself as they could to try and see exactly which ones gave them that warm fuzzy feeling. 

They’d been dancing around the elephant in the room for an hour or two now, worried that they’d somehow ruin the good feeling it gave them by addressing it. 

"Well, here goes nothing,” they mutter to themself, clearing their throat. “Um.. That's David. I’m David. Yes. Uh, they're in this room, obviously, they like... Imogen, and um, they still record some episodes of David's fact corner even though they really aren't supposed to, and they're trying very hard not to die, or get angry, but they aren’t very good at either of those.” Oops. A bit off track. “Um… they like drawing things, or… they did, when they were allowed to, and they like their onesie, and they like… thinking about Bathin, and feeling all warm and tingly inside when they do. And they like when things go well and they aren’t in immediate danger of dying!”

They pause for a second. Beyond the awkwardness of talking about themself, it feels good. It’s like they’re free of an itch they couldn’t quite reach that they had forgotten was even there.

“They like this, too,” David says, mostly to themself. 

“Good for them,” Imogen responds. 

For the first time since losing their pod, they feel a bit more hopeful.


End file.
